Goodbye my Almost Lover
by Kaasuten
Summary: When Kagome was sleeping, lost in peaceful sleep, she was stolen by the very epitome of her every nightmare. One year later, she is still stuck, trapped in the future with no way to return to the Feudal Era or the boy who had completely stolen her heart
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One;

This place was barren now, different, cold. It held none of the excitement and the life that had once been so relied on by the beautiful girl who lived in the Higurashi Shrine. It held no magic, no hint of the adventure she had once embarked on. There was nothing left in the bone eaters well but dust, dirt and memories… memories of a life that was better, not safer not more healthy… but better.

The door to the shed the well lied within slid open slowly, a single string of light drawing across the edge of the well. A thin, pale hand snaked across the door as Kagome Higurashi slid into the well house, her heart racing a lot faster than it had ever raced before.

Kagome closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her eyes filling with tears as she stared down into the darkness of the well. There hadn't been anything in the darkness for a long time, a very long time. The tears tilted over her eyelids as she fell apart, her hand gripping tightly at the well.

"Hey Inuyasha…" She spoke, biting at her lip slightly as her finger tips etched into the thick, old wood of the bone eaters well. So many memories surrounded this place, surrounded the ancient shrine that now covered her in darkness that littered her with her deepest sorrows. "I miss you." She whispered, her voice quavering slightly with the weight of her emotions.

A sigh fell from her lips, her head falling so that her dark bangs crossed over her eyes. "It's been a year now," she whispered, feeling every string in her heart ache violently. "I finally graduated from school… It took awhile, but I made up all those classes I had failed. Moms proud, grandpas prouder…. All my friends have sort of taken me back, though skeptically…. I keep realizing that they will never be like you."

She thought about all the times she had spent with Sango, Miroku, Shippo and Inuyasha. Finding the jewel shards, getting to know each other, it had all been an adventure she had never wanted to end… but everything ended at some point or another.

"I hope you're taking care of Shippo for me," she sobbed, the tears starting to cascade down her cheeks as she realized how abandoned the young fox demon had to feel. "And… and I hope you're taking care of yourself, too." She wiped her hand across her eyes, a sniffle falling from her lips. Her makeup was running down her face, her heart hammering. "I… I never got to tell you the truth, Inuyasha and I've got to get myself together… I've got to… I've got to let you go someday."

She could remember seeing a doctor, a therapist of sorts for a few months after she had been forced so eagerly back into the future. Every day he had told her that she had to let go of her delusions in order to move on, to grow stronger… I loved you," she whispered, the tears falling even faster now, uncontrollable it seemed. "I loved you so much, I know you loved Kikyo, I know you wanted to bring her back, to be with her but…" the sobs wracked her body, her entire frame shaking slightly. "I never thought it would end like this… I never thought…"

Her mind snapped back to that night, the night that everything had fallen apart. She could see the darkness, the single shadow and the strong arms that wrapped around her. At the time, she had thought it was Inuyasha, thought he was taking her away, but he wasn't… it wasn't… Before she knew what was happening, the jewel was being ripped away from her body and she was lost in darkness as she spiraled down the well and back into the future where she belonged.

"Why haven't you come to get me?" She cried.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two;

It was her baby brother who found her that next morning, her head resting against the harsh wood of the well, her hands digging into the dirt. Her face held smudges of her mascara and her eyes were puffy, but she looked peaceful, almost at ease. Her head hung low, her bangs shadowing some of her face as one delicate stream of light dipped over her body. Time had aged her, or so her brother thought. She was thinner, paler, but she held an air of tragic beauty to her every feature. The pain, the suffering… it hadn't done much good for the tiny slumbering teen. It was this moment where she was lost in her own dreams, living in a better place. A delicate smile crossed over her lips, her features lighting up an immeasurable amount as his name slipped from her lips.

"InuYasha."

Sota smiled slightly, glad his sister could at least hold onto that. In her dreams, no doubt, she was still back on the other side of the well, still fighting for the jewel and protecting the future of her world as well as the future of InuYasha's… and she was able to see the object of her unrequited love as often as her heart desired. For the sake of his sisters sanity, Sota was happy.

Yet, he didn't have the heart to wake her. Sure, she was going to be late for the job she hated and would therefore miss the date her mother had insisted she go on with Hojo, but Sota doubted any of that truly mattered to the small girl for right now… she was with the boy of her dreams.

Within Kagome's Dreams

Her eyes fluttered open as she looked around her, lost what she could only describe as her past, the dense forest, the thick underbrush, everything looked as it once had back when she was still a part of the Feudal Era. Her eyes snapped behind her to the giant tree, the same tree that still existed in her time, the place that had connected her to the boy she loved so much.

"InuYasha?" She called, her heart pounding so loudly she could feel it all throughout her body. "Where are you?"

She knew that even if this were a dream he would be here. He was always there, tucked safely in the corners of her mind where she could call upon his arms around her and his lips on hers at any moment. He was her personal demon, her angel in disguise.

"Kagome?"

His voice was like a thousand angels, a chorus of light that caused her whole body to reel around, her chest heaving, the tears threatening to return again. There he was, standing only a few feet away from her, his hand reaching out to her like it had so many times before.

"Kagome are you coming?" His voice was gruff and held a little of his typical annoyance, but she didn't mind. More than anything else in the world she wanted to rush into his arms, to hold him to her and never let him go. She wanted to tell him she loved him, wanted him to know her every dark secret and to feel him around her again…

But her feet wouldn't move.

"Kagome?"

She opened her mouth to answer him, tried to call him closer but no sound came out, not a whisper or a call, just the darkest silence of her heart. Why couldn't she answer him? What was holding her back?

His eyes turned dark, that typical rage he held so tightly to spreading across his angelic features. "Fine." With that simple huff he had turned and turned away from her.

Her body shook violently from the tears, unable to calm herself.

And she woke up.

The topaz eyes that were glancing down at her were just as beautiful as they had been in her dream, which only served to convince her that she was still asleep, that she wasn't actually seeing the beautiful half-demon boy before her, but was still lost in her never ending nightmare.

"Oh Inuyasha…" She whispered, her heart melting at the sight of him. Her voice was back, she noticed, wasn't that a good thing? A sign that maybe this dream wouldn't be like the nightmare she typically had.

"Took you long enough," he smiled his half smile, his eyes lighting up as he helped her to her feet.

She reached out and touched his cheek, his nose and finally the soft white ears atop his head. "You feel so real…" She whispered with sorrow in her heart.

"Baka," his smile was still as thick as she remembered it to be. "That's because I am real…."

She felt the tears forming. "But you can't be,"

He shook his head and smiled. "Took us long enough to find the final pieces, but we did it." He grinned. "We found them and were able to put the jewel back together." His grin only grew. "I'm here to take you home."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three;

It was hard for the Higurashi girl to believe that this was her InuYasha and not some dream standing before her, that he had really found a way back into her life after so many months of loneliness and anguish.

Her fingers traced along the finer details of his face, his nose, his lips, his jaw line. Everything felt so foreign and yet… so familiar. It was as if she had always known where her fingers should travel, and she knew she had, she had been so in love for so long that it hardly surprised her to find how easily she recognized his every shape. Her hands gripped onto the loose red kimono, unwilling to let him go just yet. It was as if releasing his clothing would release the dream and he would be gone forever.

"When Naraku stole you from us that day we realized he had stolen your part of the jewel as well… we almost lost hope at finding you ever again," InuYasha explained as they sat on the floor in Kagome's bed room. Her fingers tangled in his knotted hair as he once again reacquainted herself with his beauty. "But it was actually Shippo who came up with the idea that we hunt down your shards on our own, that if the jewel was complete we could figure out a way to bring you back through the well."

Her heart constricted at the small fox demons name. How she had missed her surrogate son and suddenly she found herself filled with questions. "How is Shippo? Is he okay? Is he lonely? And Miroku? And Sango? Are they still the same? Have you been to visit Kaede?"

Inuyasha chuckled slightly and rolled his eyes. "One question at a time, Baka."

Kagome smiled sheepishly and a light blush crossed over her cheeks, taking one deep breath and thinking about which question would be her first. "How did you put the jewel together?" She asked, turning the perfected jewel over and over again in her petite hands.

"It wasn't easy." Inuyasha admitted, rocking back a bit as he sat on the floor, his eyes closing as he clearly remembered the battle with Kohaku that had destroyed Sango and had left the boy officially lifeless. It wasn't that Sango had wanted to take the jewel shard from Kagome, but everyone knew that the priestess from the future would have the ability to calm the jewel. They all hoped she would make a wish that would right all the wrongs that had been made over the years. "Sango hopes you'll wish that Naraku had never existed. We, Sango and I, both thought that would right everything, make it the way the world should have been. But… Miroku disagrees."

"He does?" She asked, curious as to what could be so wrong about a world where Naraku had never been born.

"Miroku thinks that will erase everything. She thinks that if Naraku hadn't existed then our group never would have met. You would have continued your life in the future. Miroku would have never had the windtunnel and Sango never would have lost her village and therefore the two never would have met. They're getting married, you know. Just… not until you come home."

The revelation of the upcoming marriage delighted Kagome. She had never wanted anything more than for the two to stop being so stubborn and to realize their undying affections for each other. She wanted them to be happy, the way she hoped she would one day be happy with Inuyasha. A blush crossed her face again. "I'm so happy for them! I want to know everything about it as soon as we get home!"

Inuyasha smiled, clearly glad that she was coming back with him. "Miroku thinks if Kikyo hadn't been killed then I never would have gotten sealed to the tree and you never would have come through the well, and well… I don't agree that life would be better without Naraku… easier, maybe. But we've all agreed our lived are better because of you."

Turning the jewel in her hands, Kagome thought, and thought, and thought. There were a lot of things she could wish for, a lot of things she knew people would want her to wish for. "How long has the jewel been completed?"

Inuyasha thought for a moment, "About two weeks or so. It took us a while to get back from the bone eaters well after we put it all together again."

Kagome's jaw dropped slightly, astonishment overflowing her. "You're still a half demon."

Inuyasha nodded, sure, their whole adventure had begun because he had wanted to be a full demon. "But being full demon wouldn't have meant anything…. With….with you stuck in the future." He blushed. "So…" he smiled. "Are you ready to come home and make your wish?"

Kagome glanced back at the large yellow backpack behind her on her bed, a hopeful smile crossing her lips. "I was ready eleven months ago."


End file.
